Vegetable-curing plant.



T. F. EWTON & F. E. WALDROP. VEGETABLE cua'ma PLANT. APPLICATION FILEDFEB. 4. 1918- 1,284,628. Patentvd Nov. 12,191

2 SHEETS-SHEEI lv IA'V'ENTORS T F Ewfon F. E, Wa/drop ATTORNEY.

WITNESS Q} T. F.EW10N & F. E. WALDROP vzomm cums PLANT. AFPUCATWN FILEDFEB. 4. \913.

Patented Nov. 12, 1918.

2 SHEETS SHEEI 2 'VENTORS ATTORNEY.

WITW'ES SES f STATES 'PATEW QEFI GE'.

TKOMASB'. nwzrom or DALLAS, AND rnanous E. wanna/or, or nonovmwrnmSAIDWALDROP ASSIGNORTO SAID EWTON:

VEGETABLE-CURING EPLANT.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented'Nov.12;=19i8r Application flled February 4, 1915-. Se'rial'flc;215.258

Ta all wham itmay concern:

Be it;known that we, THOMAS F. EWTON and'FnAnons E.'WALDROP, citizens ofthe Uhitecl States,- residing at Dallas and Longyiew, in the counties ofDallas and Gregg andState" of Texas, have invented certain new and.useful Improvements in Vegetable- Cu'ringIlants, of which the followingis a sp fic'ationi.

hisinvention pertains to the curing of ve stables.

ever-a1 apparatuses have been designed foizcuri egetables by subjectingthe same to; heate l airof a given temperature for c periodbr periods.The air is circulated andv it .is customar to deposit the vegetables in;bins and there ore it is also necessary to control-thedirect supply ofair to each bin. So farlas we have been able to observe no go apparatus.has been produced whereby a given-volume of air may be individuallysuppliedito each binthus making each bin a unit and the main feature ofour invention;;therefore ism provide a unit system ,of: cur=ing. Incarrying out the invention it is.proposed to construct a curing housewith. plurality of bins and having provision; .fori admitting andexhausting air whereby. circulation may behad; The air, go ofconrsmis tobe heated and the manner of heating is optional. It is proposed toprovident each bin means for forcing air into thah bimhowever the air,used by said means mustafirkbe-heated and each air forcing as means;must bearranged to be made dormantwhen its. use is not desired. We claimthat by the unit system or the supplying of a given volume of air heatedto a given temperatureiconstantly supplied tothe vegewttablesimaparticular bin with a minimum fluctuation. will not only cure thevegetables more readily and more uniform] but will reduce thedeterioration and su stantially prevent decay. I

Thelinvention will be more readily under stood from a reading of thefollowing specification and bytreference to the accompanying drawings,in which an example of the invention is illustrated, and wherein, 50.,Figural is .a horizontal sectional view showing a heating means disposedin a house constructed in accordance with this invention,

Fig. '2 is a transverse sectional'viewbf said house,

Fig. 3 is a longitudinal sectionalviewof' the same, and r Fig. 4 is atransverse sectional detail of one of the bins. i

In the drawings th numeral 1 designates 5 a foundation on which uprightside wrnsa and end walls? are built. These'wallsare constructed asinsulators so as to" retain the heat within the building. Aninsulenngaceiling-4 is provided above which is arranged b5 a loft 5 covered by aroof 6 having gablbs 7 at each end. The building -is provided with acentral aisle 8- on each SldMOf which bins 9 are arranged. The biasaresepw rated by vertical uprightslatted"walls'10"70 and each has afront 11 at the-aislecont posed of horizontal bars which may be w movedor placed one at a. timQin-emptying or filling the bins. Each binhasfaslattd floor 12 inclined downward ""toward '"the 75. aisle. Thebins do not extend to t'hb *oeiling' and each end wall 3 is provided'ivitli ex haust fans 13' above each row "'offlbiiisi' Dampers 14 areprovided in theceilihg'ovei' each bin, whereby communication'with theloft 5 may be established or cut oifdsdw sired. This is for thepurposeof ventila tion and ventilating fans 15 aremmnrted'in the gable 7.

Beiow the fioorsl2 are 'oists 'l'ti s'uj Q ing the same andjund'er t ecenter-oi ae'h bin :1 bellowsl'f of-the ordinary'construc 'tion issupported by the joists anddeaends therefrom. Each bellows isconnectedwitli a perforated nozzle 18 extending np'through' the floor 12as shown. Onewing of acli bellows is rigi'dlv fastened in position by'abrace 19 while the otherwing carriesa' (1e pending latch 20 pivotedthereon: Eaifli latch is offset so as to engage theflanged' collar 21fixed on a reciproratihg rowm supported in standards 23longitiidinallyof" the house. Each latch has a lngfltpro jectin-g aboveits pivot point andkngaziflfl' a retaining spring 25'and is alsoprovidedbelow its pivot point with an eye 26. When it is desiredtodiscontitruetheopetatidn of a bellows a hook 27 is inserted through anopening 28 from the aisle and engaged in must have. a heating ternerature and for heating the same prior to orcing it mto the bins we'have shown coils of steam pipe 30 located ad'acent to the bellows. It isto be understoo that an means of heating air or supplying heate aircould be used. The rod 22 is reciprocated by means of a crank 31connected thereto by an adjustable link 32, said crank being driven bysuitable means. The fans or devices 13, 15 and 29 ma be suitably drivenby means not shown.

n curing vegetables such as sweet potatoes the bins 9 are loaded so thatthe vege tables rest on the floors 12 and surround and cover the nozzles18. Motion being imparted the rods 22' will be reciprocated and allthose bellows whose latches 20 are in engagement with the collars 21will be operated. Air being admitted through the intakes 29 will beheated b the steam pipes 30 and taken into the be lows which will forcesaid heated air out through their nozzles 18. The air will be forced totravel around the vegetables and those at the bottom of the bin will betreated as well as through a long conduit by nozzles arranged atintervals as the nozzles nearer the source of su ply would receive agreater volume. Air admitted and passed over or through the bins in aeral wa would not be evenly distributecfi It will e apparent that eachbin is a unit in itself and may all 'lhe foregoing description andillustration".

clearly ex rose the invem'o but it is to be understoo that said ill.lii't on is merely an exemplification and the invention may be carriedout in various ways.

What we claim is,

1. In a vegetable curin plant, a structure including a plurality of uns,0. bellows located under each b1n, and mechanism for operating thebellows in unison or o eratin one or more of the bellows whi e the oters remain dormant.

2. In a vegetable curing plant, a structure including a plurality ofbins, a bellows located under each bin, mechanism for operating thebellows in unison or operating one or more of the bellows wh e theothers remain dormant, the structure havin provision for supplyin heatedair to the ellows.

3. In a vegeta 1e curin plant, the combination in a house of a uralityof slatted bins for receiving vegeta bles, a nozzle projectingupwardinto each bin, a bellows con nected with each nozzle, a common operatingdevice for the bellows extendin under the bins, and means connected witeach bellows for connecting or disconnectin same with the commonoperating means w ereby each bellows is individually operated or helddormant.

4. In a vegetable curin plant, the combination in a ,house of a luralityof slatted bins for'receiving vegeta les, a nozzle projectin upward intoeach bin, a bellows connecte with each nozzle extendin under the bins,means connected with each llows for connecting or disconnectin same withthe common operatin means w ereby each bellows is individual operated orheld dormant, and means fiir supplying heated air to the bellows.

,In testimony whereof we allix our signatures.

THOMAS F. EWTON. FRANCES E. WALDROP.

